Arriving in Brazil – Foz do Iguaçu and Iguaçu Waterfalls: Take 2.

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After seeing the waterfalls in Argentina, I stayed one more day in Puerto Iguazu, during which both Argentina and England had World Cup matches, so during the Argentina match the city was deserted save for a few American backpackers and a dog that had been dressed in the Argentinean football strip. On the edge of town is a viewpoint overlooking the confluence of the Iguazu and Paraná rivers, and thus the triple frontier with Brazil and Paraguay, which was about the only thing of interest to see in Puerto Iguazu.

The border crossing the next day from Puerto Iguazu to Foz do Iguaçu in Brazil was astonishingly easy and quick. Probably because it was a Sunday and both the bus and the roads were empty. I found my hostel without any problems, leaving all of the afternoon to have a quick look at Foz. The city is much bigger than its Argentinean counterpart, but similarly well developed and an altogether pleasant city. Though being Sunday, virtually everywhere was shut. Even though it’s much better than Puerto Iguazu, with 300,000 residents, there’s not that much to see in the city, although there was a free zoo a couple of blocks from my hostel. And interestingly enough there’s also a large mosque which you can see from quite a distance; upon arriving there the whole neighbourhood it is in seems to be Middle-Eastern. Not something I had expected to see.

The following day it was back to Iguaçu Falls. The views from the Brazilian side of the falls were definitely better, as most of the falls are close to Argentina and face towards Brazil, so you can see many at once. However, I definitely preferred the Argentinean side as you can just get so much closer to the falls. The trail on the Brazilian side was much shorter, as there’s a lot less to see. I had finished in under 2 hours, whereas Argentina took pretty much the whole day. Nevertheless, it was still definitely worth visiting the two sides, and as you can see from the photos, it really is a breath-taking spectacle.

The only major problem I have with Brazil so far is the cost. The Brazilian currency, the Real, has increased in value so much against the pound in the last few years. The current exchange rate is 2.66 Reales to the Pound, whereas back in 2006 it was 6 Reales to the pound. All the hostels are a fair amount more expensive than Argentina, but it’s bus travel that is so much more expensive. I knew Brazil was expensive compared to the rest of South America, but I wasn’t expecting European prices.

The language difference so far is not proving too difficult, as most people in Foz seem to speak Spanish and/or English. And I’ve managed to buy a few things by speaking in Portuguese, but understanding what people say to me is very difficult most of the time. People who say that Portuguese and Spanish are virtually the same language couldn’t be more wrong, though written down Portuguese is reasonably easy to understand for Spanish speakers. But there are massive differences, so even that isn’t straight forward. Hopefully I’ll pick up more useful phrases that will help me get around the country.

So after a very brief stay in Foz, it was time to move on. I originally wanted to head straight to Brasilia, but as it seems to be difficult to get there from Foz, I’ve ended up buying a ticket for Sao Paulo. The next blog will come from there!

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Photos

The Triple Frontier
As seen from Argentina, with Paraguay across the Parana river on the left, and Brazil across the Iguazu river on the right.